This is
how I experience my life. I’ve hidden behind my camera and viewed the world
through the lens. I watch other people live their lives. I’ve given up on my
dreams, and sheltered my heart from love; because both have given me nothing
but pain. Even thinking about opening myself up, sends my fears into overdrive.
It’s better to be safe, than to take a risk and have your life shattered into
pieces alongside your heart. This is what I believed.

Dangerous.

Risks. Fear Nothing.

I live for
the rush of adrenaline I get when I work my stunts. Nothing else matters but
the feel of my heart pounding when I challenge the line between life and death.
Women are nothing more than a distraction; they use me for my connections, as I
use them to escape the pain of my past before moving on to my next adrenaline
fix. My life is consumed with excitement, danger and risks—it’s all I needed.

Denials.

Fear. The complete wrong time.

Jasmin and
Jet will face off over photos, stunts and the truth hidden in their
hearts.The last person Jasmin wants to
be with is a man who takes life for granted.Jet wants to give his heart to no one; especially one who might not
understand the secrets that haunt him. Despite their protests, Jasmin’s and
Jet’s lives tangle; the threads of love and fear bind them. Between their
passions and their pasts, they fight to hang onto each other . . . but will the
stakes be too high when faced with the ultimate sacrifice?

Her
eyes narrowed. “You aren’t getting into my panties, no matter how much you
flirt, no matter how long I’m here. Again, I’m sorry, I’ll go and you can go
back to your life as it was.”

“I
know I’m not getting into your panties, all right? I know that.” And I did. She
wasn’t the kind of girl to buckle to some pressure. I could see that strength
in her.

We
stood like that, staring at each other, weighing the words between us. Finally,
she gave me a nod, dark hair spilling around her slim shoulders. “All right, if
you’re sure. Then okay. I’ll call my boss back and tell him that I was
mistaken.”

She
picked up her phone, dialed and was speaking to her boss within a minute. I
moved deeper into the room, closer to the glass door that led onto a balcony,
not unlike my own hotel room. On the edge of the dresser was a book that read
“Portfolio.” I flipped it open, stunned by the page I’d opened to. A young man,
probably about my age, with dark hair and green eyes just like Jasmin’s, stared
up at me, past me, through me as if he were in the room. Shit, the girl had
talent. This must be her brother. Ryan . . . Was that his name?

The
phone gave a beep as she hung up and I closed the book, turning to face her.

“I
don’t even like her, you know,” I said.

“Your
stepmother?”

“Tina.
I only kissed her to make you jealous, Spitfire.” This was much safer
territory.

Jasmin’s
lips quivered and she put a hand on her hip. “And do you think it worked, your
jealousy tactics?”

A
shot of pure pleasure zinged through my entire body, tingling through every
sense I had, as her voice curled around me. There was a subtle difference now.
When we’d been with Hugh, she’d been open and honest, laughing with us over
things most women would have slapped us for. Now, there was a hesitancy, an
uncertainty that only made me want her more. She was the good girl, the sweet
one I knew I shouldn’t even take a shot at. But I was going to anyway—because
doing so was safer than the past, safer than thinking.

“I’m
hoping they worked, at least a little.” I started toward her, each step
heightening the anticipation.

Jasmin
didn’t move away as I approached her, didn’t pull from my touch as I ran my
hands up and down her arms, feeling her soft skin quiver under my hands. “She
isn’t my type, anyway.” I smiled down at her. “Did I tell you I have a thing
for green-eyed girls?” My lips were just above hers, breathing in as she
breathed out, tasting her even before I kissed her.

“Really?
I bet you say that to all the girls,” she said, but didn’t pull away. Our lips
were brushing against each other now, but still, I didn’t kiss her.

“I’m
not a good guy.” Where the fuck had that come from? Wasn’t I trying to convince
her to sleep with me even though I knew she wouldn’t?

She
licked her lips, which meant her tongue danced along my mouth in a tantalizing
movement that made me groan.

“I
could lose my job,” she said, but again she stayed where she was. I circled my
hands around her waist, slid my hands down until I was cupping her sweet cheeks
through the thin sundress. I worked the material upwards until my hands were
under her dress, feeling along the edge of her satin thong, dipping my fingers
along the crevice of her tight ass. She sucked in a sharp gasp, and I leaned
her against the bedside table, pressing myself into her.

“I
don’t want you to lose your job. You’re good at it,” I said, and meaning it.

Her
hands slipped over my shoulders and down my chest, stopping at my pecs. She
fingered the nipple ring, sending a dangerous spike of pleasure though me.
“You’re going to get yourself killed one day.”

She
bit my upper lip, sucked it into her mouth, and then let go before I could
respond. “I can’t. I can’t lose my job. No matter how bad I want . . .” Her
hands were no longer pulling me close, but pushing me backward.

I
let her. My Spitfire was right. We were so wrong for each other. She was
smoothing her hair back and gave me a smile, soft and sad. Like she was
regretting being an adult, doing the right thing. Hard, so hard, to be a grown
up.

Well,
I had never been known for being adult-like. Fuck it.

Tangling
my hands in her hair, I tugged her to me. She stumbled and I caught her lips
with my own, murmuring between breaths.

“Just
a kiss. Nothing more. I promise.”

Sweet
and hot, she opened up to me, her hands sliding up under my t-shirt tracing my
muscles and scars. I buried myself in her, putting every emotion I had into the
kiss, giving her everything I had. I held her, breathing her in as if my life
depended on it, feeling her give back to me the sweet urgency of one grasping
for a life line. Sweet Mary, I was going to lose it without even getting her
naked.

Still holding her face, I turned to whisper a lie in
her ear. “See, just a kiss.”

ABOUT the AUTHOR

Shannon
Mayer lives in the southwestern tip of Canada with her husband, dog, cats,
horse, and cows. When not writing she spends her time staring at immense
amounts of rain, herding old people (similar to herding cats) and attempting to
stay out of trouble. Especially that last is difficult for her.

She
is the author of the The Nevermore Trilogy, The Rylee Adamson Novels and the
Celtic Legacy series. Her first New Adult Romance, High Risk Love, is scheduled
for release July 1, 2013.

1 comment:

This is Lysa, Shannon Mayer's Assistant. I wanted to take a moment to thank you for being a part of the Release Event for Shannon’s New Adult Romance , "High Risk Love".

I have also decided to offer those of you who participated in this event, an ARC copy of High Risk Love in exchange for a review.

If you're interested, we'd love to hear what you think! Please email me your Kindle Email Address (the one that ends in @kindle.com) at lysa@pegasus-designs.com so I can drop the ARC copy right onto your device! You’ll also need to add my email address to your Approved Email List on your Amazon account. Let me know if you need directions on doing this.

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Thanks again for participating and I hope you'll want to read High Risk Love!